Sunday, March 15, 2015

The Journey Begins

Last night I left the Portland rain for my first non-North American international experience. I arrived in Costa Rica approximately eight hours later, where it was 80 degrees and sunny.

Not a bad way to start spring break.

Travel-wise, I consider myself very lucky. Everything went
as smoothly as I could have hoped, especially considering the temporary closure of the San Jose airport Thursday
following the Turrialba volcano’s most powerful eruption in 20 years. The
volcano spewed ash that reached areas approximately 30 miles away. I'm extremely grateful the eruption did not interfere with my flight.

Fast forward a few hours and here I am in Cedros with fellow Murrow student Selena Alvarado. We are staying
the night with our host family, la familia Marchena. Our room has a balcony overlooking the
bustling street below. Bikes and buses roar past and cars honk frequently.

The people have been wonderful and my basic knowledge of
Spanish has already come in quite useful since no one here speaks much
English. A friendly neighbor gave us a tour of the local “naturaleza” or
“environment,” showing us the mango and plantain trees that will bear fruit in
the summer.

Our host mother even showed me some remnants of the ash that
settled on our balcony. She ran a finger over the glass table, showing me how
it was still coated with gray dust.

I have already been surprised by both the cultural
similarities (for example, in the taxi to our host family, the radio blasted
AC/DC. We also passed a Lenovo billboard bearing Ashton Kutcher’s face, and Coca
Cola signs are plentiful) and differences.

One of the differences in Costa Rica that really astounds me
is the sheer amount of fences. Fences line the sides of nearly every road,
only ending where another begins. Most are topped with circles of barbed wire or
even razor wire. The homes in Cedros are all behind gates, also frequently
crowned with wire.

The rules of the road also surprised me, mainly because
there don't seem to be many. Pedestrians cut through traffic to cross the road
– our driver passed two girls waiting on the middle, yellow stripe of a
four-lane road. Cars park half on the side of the road and half on sidewalks. A
merchant had set up a small stand that took up a good portion of one lane. I’m not
sure if blinkers are part of the driving lexicon either. We made it without any
accidents, though.

I was fascinated by the amount of graffiti. All the metal
fences and walls provide a virtually unlimited canvas to graffiti artists. Leaving
the airport, I stared out at the pictures splashed across the landscape. There were some words, but also cartoons and portraits. In Cedros,
the artists seem to favor letters.

Tomorrow, we leave at 6 a.m. for our orientation with the Osa sea turtle project. After an day-long bus ride, we will arrive in Playa Blanca to report on and help with efforts to preserve sea turtles.

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About the Program

The Murrow Backpack Journalism project enlists smart, dedicated and curious student-journalists to travel into some of the world’s most remote regions to report on stories that count.

These student-journalists are eye-witnesses to world events. They are on-scene where and when the news is being made.

As a backpack journalist, students are outfitted with—and trained in the use of—the latest video, audio and web technology. They’re sent into the field to create television, radio, web and print news reports which are disseminated to broadcast and print organizations throughout the Pacific Northwest.